‘Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win. Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.” — 1 Corinthians 9:24-26
There’s a lot we could unpack from this Scripture passage.
But when I read it the other day, what stuck out to me was that last line.
I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.
Now, I’m not a boxer. But shadowboxing serves a purpose. It’s not pointless.
But it’s also not the thing. It’s not the same as fighting.
There’s an element of pretend. Not in a fantastical kind of way, but more like a dress rehearsal.
And I think Saint Paul’s point is this: we are not in practice or the dress rehearsal. We are in the fight.
It is on right now.
So don’t fight as if the enemy can’t punch you back. As if the enemy can’t defeat you. The enemy is not just a shadow or a figment of our imagination.
The enemy is real. The fight is real. The stakes are real.
This is not practice.
The fight is happening now.
Let us pray.
Lord, help us see clearly the realities before us. Help us to wake up, to enter the fight, in whatever way You are calling each of us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Keep fighting the good fight. Our Lady of Victory, pray for us.
